Take a Picture, It'll Last Longer
by Josolen
Summary: Why don't you take a picture, it'll last longer." Amanda hissed at the gaping boys in disgust...
1. The gun goes BOOM

She gasped for air, her ragged breaths coming in short waves, clenching her stomach as she tried to breath, leaning against the large concrete pole under the bridge. She could still hear the fading sirens as they zoomed off in the opposite direction in search of the juvenile delinquent.

The teenage girl slid down to the ground, leaning her back up against the cold pole, looking down at the beautiful engraved, diamond necklace she clutched in her other hand. "My god" the girl whispered. "I bet this'll bring in some money to last us a while at the pawn shop. Hmmm, 50...maybe-"

"Freeze!" A gruff voice stopped her in mid sentence, his gun pointed at the pillar, knowing she was on the other side. "Now I want you to step out nice and slowly, hands in the air." He ordered, his southern drawl making the girl laugh softly, having run into him before.

"Shit" She whispered finally, shoving the necklace into her pocket before pushing her self up, slowly walking around the pole, raising her hands in the air. She looked at the officer, her eyes wide as she stared down the barrel of the gun. "N-Now officer, you wouldn't sh-shoot a lady would you?" She asked, very good at looking like an innocent little girl when she wanted to.

"Well, now you see, if you pushed me to it…" He began to drone on and on about nothing as far as the teenager was concerned.

She rolled her eyes, putting her arms down and sprinting down the highway, leaving the cop to continue talking to himself.

She headed up the trash covered slope, about to reach the metal fence when a loud BOOM was heard and she let out a scream, clutching her arm as she stopped running, the force of the bullet sending her tumbling back down the slope to the officer's feet, her eyes clamped shut as she drifted in and out of consciousness……

- - - -

Her eyes cracked open, for a moment everything a blur off color, but as her eyes adjusted, the objects around her came into focus.

She lay in her room, her arm in a sling, throbbing angrily ever so often.

The court trial was over. She was sentenced to go to Camp Green Lake. A BOYS correction facility.

_Why me?_ Her thoughts groaned. _I'm a girl for gods sakes! A girl! _She heaved a heavy sigh. She knew why. She just didn't want to admit it.

_The judge straightened the glasses on the end of her nose, looking over the papers in her hands slowly and silently, muttering something to the bailiff before stetting the papers down, pushing her glasses back up her nose again and looking at the teenager with a groan._

_The girl had slid down her chair again, her legs stretched out before her, her arms shoved in the front pocket of her 5 sizes too large sweatshirt pocket. _

_Her hair was tied back with a dirty black bandana, several strands of unruly brown hair escaping and falling around her delicate face. _

_Her jeans were tight, light blue, and extremely dirty, just like her white sweatshirt and beat up black VANS she had shop lifted form a Mervyns a few months before. _

"_Miss Miller, would you please rise." The judge ordered, staring at the motionless girl, realizing her eyes were closed and she was asleep. "Miss Miller!" Her tone held and edge of annoyance. _

_Her older brother who sat behind her, the only other one in the courtroom, flicked the back of her head. _

_She jerked up, wincing as her bandaged arm gave an unexpected jab of pain. "What now? Can't you see I was sleeping?" She hissed angrily, glancing up at the judge. _

_The bailiff let out an angry growl, glaring at the girl, though he said nothing. "Miss Miller, please rise." The judge repeated, clasping her hands together, her knuckles white. _

_Slowly the girl stood, crossing her arms. _

"_Now Miss Miller, I've looked over the evidence and the testimonies and there's really nothing that WON'T convince me now that you're NOT guilty." She said bluntly. _

"_No! Shit! I didn't do it! Damn woman can't probably even read right!" She growled angrily, sliding back down into her chair slowly. _

_The judge tipped her glasses to the end of her nose. "Well Miss Miller, since you certainly don't mind acting like a boy in MY court room, then I'm sure you wouldn't mind spending 14 months at Camp Green Lake, a BOYS correctional facility. I believe that would do better for you then any jail around here would." She said bluntly, keeping her voice calm. _

_The girl leapt back up to her feet. "You can't be serious!" She screeched. _

"_14 months, Camp Green Lake." The judge declared, smacking her gavel against the hard grain of the desk. "Court shall…15 months…if we see fit to…" _

_The teenager sank back into her chair, tuning out most of what else the judge said, the woman's words drifting in and out of her head as she took in everything that just happened. The rest of what the judge decreed was nothing but a blur of sound to the girl's ears as tears began to stream down her cheeks, not even turning around to look at her brother, knowing he too was in tears. _

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Well, sorry, but that's all I got for now, this is my first fan fiction that I've written on my own so please tell me what you think! Thanks, chapter two will be up soon!


	2. The bus goes BOOM

BUMP……BUMP……BUMP……BUMP……BUMP…..BOOM!!

The old bus came to a slow stop, shaking and vibrating, giving an angry jerk as it finally gave up the fight and stopped moving all together. The engine gurgled and popped, another loud boom erupted from under the hood and smoke began to steadily rise.

"Oh shit!" The bus driver grumbled, sliding out of his seat and smacking the button above the door. It swung open as the fat, sweaty man lumbered out onto the dusty road. "Stupid bus….. I told them a million times to trash the damn thing…….they don't listen……they never listen to me, of course not! Why listen to a man like me….." He grumbled to himself, popping the hood angrily.

The teenager slumped down in her seat, the cuffs clicking and rattling as she angrily fought against them, letting out a small whine as her bandaged arm gave a small pang of pain which drew the attention of the guard. He stared at her hungrily, his eyes running over her body, mentally his hands following.

She shot him an angry glare, but didn't say anything, continuing to pull at the cuffs, her wrists raw.

The guard snorted and laid his gun down on the seat next to him, standing up and smiling at her. "You better get comfy, we're gonna be here a while." He hissed, walking off the bus to help the driver.

The girl let out a frustrated sigh, licking her dry lips and looking out the grimy window.

It was hard to see past the lip marks and finger smudges covering it. Not to mention the crusty snot and spit dried to it. But after several minutes of concentrating her eyes, she finally looked past at the bleak desert before her.

NOTHING was around them but sand and a small strip of lighter sand that proved to be the road.

She swallowed hard, trying to wet her throat. The air was thick, making one feel like they could hardly breathe.

Just sitting there made her sweat, her crimson red tank top clinging to her like a second skin, doing nothing but make it even more miserable for her.

She hated this bus. All she could think about was being anywhere but there.

The bus creaked and groaned, the angry bus driver kicking and smacking the bus out of rage. "DAMNED BUS FROM HELL!" He yelled.

"Calm down calm down, while you fix it, I'll walk her down." The guard assured him, stepping back onto the bus and smiling at the teenager.

He moved over to her, unlocking the cuffs and pulling her to her feet which drew another whine from her as his fingers brushed her throbbing and swollen arm. He pulled her arms behind her back, placing the cuffs around her wrists once more.

She groaned, shifting uneasily, hating the way he examined her every move, his eyes especially interested in her chest.

She turned away, licking her dry lips again and looking at her backpack on the seat next to her. "What about my stuff?" She croaked, her throat sore and aggravated.

"I'll carry it." He growled, picking up the backpack and his gun in one hand, grabbing her arm and shoving her down the isle with the other. "Get moving" He ordered once they stepped out onto the sand.

The teenager groaned again but slowly began to walk forward, constantly being prodded and poked as they walked, though there was no reason to, he just liked to push her around.

After about 30 minutes of walking the guard told her to stop and looked around, not a drop of water in sight, not a cloud in the sky, but ever so often they'd pass a little cluster of holes, all 5ft deep and 5ft wide.

He looked at the girl, who was dripping with sweat, gasping in dry air as she looked around for water. A thought hit her. She turned around and looked at him. "Can I get something out of my back pack?" She asked quietly.

"What exactly?" He hissed.

"A water bottle." She replied.

Calmly he unzipped her bag and fished through her clothes and such till he finally pulled out the water bottle. She smiled faintly but it faded as she watched him unscrew the cap and begin to guzzle down the water, letting it run down his face and lips, soaking the front of his shirt which had already been drenched in sweat.

Once the bottle was empty he threw it on the ground and looked at her. "That was refreshing. Thanks." He smiled, zipping her backpack up once more and pointing his gun at her again. "Get moving, we've still got another mile and a half to go." He ordered, pushing her forward.

She wasn't in shock, she had partly been expecting it, but she had hoped he wouldn't. She swallowed hard, her throat dry and her lips beginning to crack. She licked them again as she began to step forward, more sweat dripping off of her body.

The guard watched her, licking his own lips, but it wasn't to wet them. He watched the way her hips swayed slightly as she walked, and his eyes locked on her butt. His fingers twitched but simply tightened around his gun. 'Those boys are gonna be in for a surprise.' He thought, laughing softly as he pushed her forward with his gun once more.

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Thank you thank you thank you for your reviews! I know this chapter is short, I wrote it real quick today. Let me know what you think and if you have any ideas tell me!


	3. The lake goes BYE BYE

"Hey look! Fresh meat!" A boys voice howled as all of his friends around him dropped their shovels and gasped.

The girl walking before them was the first girl (with the exception of the warden) they had seen in months. Not to mention she most certainly was NOT ugly.

The teenager hung her head as more shovels dropped and more boys looked up at her, whistles and several gross comments shouted out at her.

With a wave of the guard's gun, the boys turned back to their digging, whispering amongst themselves.

- - - -

The guard led her to the office of Mr. Sir, a cranky man who was a little woo woo in the head ever since he quit smoking.

The girl was shoved down in a chair, which she was grateful for. Her feet felt like led balls, every step taking more energy and more of an effort. Her mouth was dry and she was EXTREMLY dehydrated, feeling light headed and unable to focus on anything. A thin layer of dust covered her body, clinging to the sweat that slid down her forehead.

Mr. Sir glanced up at the two, spitting out several sunflower seeds before swinging his feet off of the desk and shuffling through the hundreds of paper and folders piled on top of it. He pulled out one of the clip boards off of the bottom of one of the stacks, cursing wildly when the land slide of papers slid onto the floor.

Once he calmed down and quit stomping and kicking the papers around, he sat back down and began to read; "Amanda Miller, age 15, height 5 foot 6 and a half, weight 125 pounds…." He stopped and glanced up at the girl when she muttered something under her breath.

"What was that?" The guard growled, shifting in his seat.

"Nothing. I just said I don't go by Amanda. Only three people ever got to call me Amanda and that was my family." She murmured, feeling stupid when Mr. Sir snorted and began laughing, spitting several sunflower seeds at her.

"Well my name is Mr. Sir. Whenever speaking to me you will call me by my name, is that clear?" He said, his voice holding a commanding tone to it.

Amanda couldn't help but smile at the name. _Wow, I wonder how long it took for his mother to think of that one. _Her thoughts snickered.

Mr. Sir nearly tripped on the corner of his desk as he TRIED to swagger around to stand in front of her. Once he righted himself and moved over to her, she couldn't help but laugh.

His hand angrily shot out, grabbing her by the throat and pulling her up to her feet. "You think my names funny do you?" He sneered, pulling her close to his face, his breath beating down on her, making her cough at the horrid smell.

"N-no Mr. –cough cough- Sir. N-not –cough cough- not at all." She croaked.

He pulled her even closer, and for a brief dreaded moment she was afraid he might kiss her, but instead he threw her back down into the chair at full force, causing the chair to flip backwards and crash to the ground.

Amanda landed on her back, the wind knocked out of her at the unexpected force of the chair hitting the ground. She remained still for several minutes, her arm throbbing. "Whoa" She muttered, shifting uncomfortably, trying to ease the pain, though the handcuffs made it nearly impossible.

She continued to squirm for several minutes until the two men snapped their eyes away from her chest and bent down, pulling her up by her arms which withdrew another small whimper as her bandaged wound was once again brushed against. "Stop touching my damn arm!" She groaned, trying to shake loose of their sweaty hands.

The guard slowly un-cuffed her once they had pulled her to her feet. She brought her arms around immediately to look at her now raw, red, and bleeding wrists, cursing quietly.

Dirt and dust had ground into the gashes, leaving her with a painful and infected mess. Puss already forming around the edges.

Mr. Sir grabbed hold of her wrists, making her wince as he glanced them over. "Mmmmmmm" He rumbled deep in his throat, reaching over and grabbing his bag of sunflower seeds.

Amanda grimaced. The thought of eating something so salty and dry when her throat was already dry as a piece of sand paper and her lips were cracking and in desperate need of moisture made her nauseated.

She watched him pop a few into his mouth, moving his hand back to her wrists. At the mere brushing of his salty fingers over her wounds made her flinch and jump away.

He raised his eyes to look at her, spitting the sunflower seeds into a small jar before finally speaking. "This ain't a Girl Scout camp missy, no ones gonna come in here and baby-sit ya." He said bluntly, moving around his desk again as he muttered several of his own comments under his breath, chuckling softly.

He motioned for her to sit down again. She gladly obliged.

The guard shifted, pulling several folded papers out of his back pocket and handing them to Mr. Sir who grumbled and unfolded them quickly. He glanced it over before signing at the bottom, returning the papers to the guard who folded them and replaced them in his pocket.

"You got any sodas left?" He asked. "My throats as dry as the desert itself and I've still got a 10 hour ride back to the next town. Not to mention the two friggen mile walk back to the bus first." He grumbled darkly.

Mr. Sir nodded, reaching under his desk. The sound of clinking and rattling bottles could be heard and several seconds later he produced two bottles of soda, water dripping down the sides.

He handed one to the guard, popping his own open quickly.

Amanda licked her dry lips, her wrists beginning to pulse with pain.

After several minutes of silence, Mr. Sir pushed his chair back, making the teenager jump slightly. He stood up, smacking the bottle back down on the table and moving around to stand in front of Amanda once more. "You ain't in the Girl Scouts no more. Your gonna have to learn how to take care of yourself understand?" He grumbled, spitting a seed in her face before pulling her to her feet. "Huh?"

"Y-yes Mr. Sir." She whispered, keeping her eyes on the floor.

"Good" He grunted, pushing her ahead of him as he moved them towards the door.

Amanda slung her back pack over her shoulder, moving slowly, her stomach growling and her feet aching.

She had only been out there a day and already she loathed the thick grimy heat. Her nose burned with every shallow breath, the dust stinging her face and eyes.

When the door was opened, immediately they were blasted with a whole new wave of dust, the dry, still heat making her choke.

She lifted her eyes slowly as Mr. Sir continued to lead her over to a small little shack in which the clothes and supplies were kept.

"Hey honey, drop by my tent once you're finished. Tent B. I'll show ya the meanin' of a GOOD time here at Camp Green Lake." One boy called out, his friends snickering behind him.

She shot him a dark look, though it didn't stop the many comments and whistles escaping from other boys mouths.

Mr. Sir looked up at them. "I'm warning you!" He growled, waving his gun around. The boys fell silent and Amanda stared at the gun as he replaced it in its holster. He followed her eyes and grunted. "Ahhh don't worry, I wouldn't waste a bullet on you." He said, tapping the holster. "Look around Miller and tell me what you see?" He ordered rather suddenly.

"What?"

"Tell me what you see." He repeated.

She glanced around, not sure exactly what kind of answer he was looking for. "N-nothing Mr. Sir."

"You see any guard towers?"

"No Mr. Sir."

"How about electric fences?"

"No Mr. Sir."

"You wanna run away? Get goin' I won't stop ya." He shrugged, resting his fingers in the belt loops of his jeans.

She looked at the empty waste land of nothing but sand and dirt for as far as the eye could see. "I ain't gonna run away Mr. Sir." She murmured.

He turned to face her. "That's right Miller no body runs away from here you wanna know why? Them buzzards'll pick you clean by the end of the third day." He grinned. "We've got our own little oasis out here. We've got the only water and trees for miles!" He said, pointing to a cabin, larger then the rest of the buildings around them, a single tree standing on either side of it, a satellite dish not to far from those.

Amanda glanced at it, then back at Mr. Sir who smiled down at her. "C'mon, I'm not finished with you yet." He growled, moving towards the shack once more.

Immediately he began to shuffle through several piles of orange jump suits on one of the shelves nearest the door once inside, pulling out two neatly folded jump suits and handing them to her, followed by a dusty beat up old water jug, a pair of thick white gloves, a pair of goggles and a faded brown hat. She looked at the things piled into her arms, beginning to question whether or not the hat had originally been brown to begin with.

"Here at Camp Green Lake you will dig one hole each and every day. Every day that hole will be 5 feet deep and 5 feet in diameter. Your shovel is your measuring stick. " He said out of routine, having recited the same words to hundreds of kids before her. "Breakfast is at 4:30, we start you digging early to avoid that hottest part of the day. No ones gonna be out there to baby-sit ya. You stay out there till you finish your hole, then the rest of the day is yours to do with what you want understand?"

"Yes Mr. Sir." She nodded, pausing a moment before opening to mouth again. "I have a question. If its called Camp Green Lake, then where's the lake?" She asked.

He turned to face her, his eyes narrowed into two slits. "Don't get smart with me girl, or the warden'll hear about it and you'll be in BIG trouble." He growled.

She nodded slowly.

"Our philosophy here at Camp Green Lake is that you take a bad boy…uhh…kid, you make them dig holes all day, and it turns them into a good kid." He explained.

She wanted to question him on it, but knew it would be stupid. After all, he seemed moody enough as it was.

She watched him move over to another shelf, pulling off two pairs of stained white socks and a pair of white sneakers. Everything smelled like soap, which was a lot better smelling then the bus she had recently spent 10 hours on, so she wouldn't complain.

"Now one set of clothes is for you to work in, the other is for relaxation. Laundry is done every three days and on that day your work clothes'll be washed and your relaxation cloths will become your work clothes." He said, looking her over a moment, debating what to do.

Though he would have like to simply say "Okay undress." And stand there to watch and make sure she wasn't hiding anything like he had to do with all the other boys, he knew if the warden found out she'd be furious.

"Alright, you change here, I won't watch, but if you're hiding anything, I'll find out. You'll see. I've got eyes in the back of my head." He growled, mumbling to himself after a moment of debating, taking her back pack out of her hands and turning his back to her as he shuffled through it, making sure she wasn't bringing anything illegal with her.

She changed quickly, cursing the jump suit quietly as she slipped it on, leaving her crimson red tank top on underneath. She left the top 4 buttons undone, to lazy to wrestle with them as she slipped on the socks and the tennis shoes. Wadding her clothes up and picking up the others as well.

Mr. Sir turned around to look at her, handing the bag back to her and looking her over happily. "You thirsty?" He asked, pushing past her to the door.

"Yes Mr. Sir." She nodded, her hopes rising slightly.

He turned to face her, a cruel smile playing on his lips. "Well you better get used to it. You're gonna be thirsty for the next fourteen months." He grunted, stepping out the door quickly.

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So sorry that took me so long to update, it doesn't have a whole lotta action in it, I know it sucks, I'm having severe writers block right now, but don't worry, chapter 4 is going to be a whole lot better! And it will be posted sooner! Please read and review! Thanks so much for those of you who have reviewed; it makes me feel all warm and fuzzy inside. Tee hee, jkjk.


	4. ATTENTION

ATTENTION all readers of my fanfiction "Take a picture, it'll last longer"!

I know I havn't posted a chapter for a LONG time. I'm sorry about that, I've been EXTREMLY busy and frankly, I was bored with my story. So the other day I decided I will rewrite it. Now, it will have quite a few changes in some places, like the title and my characters name and stuff, but the plot line will be about the same with some differences. I will delete this fanfiction once I have the new first chapter ready to go, and hopefully will start updating them regularly once more. I apologize for the inconvenience.

-Josolen


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